1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to oil field and oil well development, and, more particularly, to novel systems and methods for fracturing and propping fissures in oil-bearing formations to increase productivity.
2. The Background Art
Oil well development has over one hundred years of extensive engineering and chemical improvements. Various methods for stimulating production of well bores associated with an oil reservoir have been developed. For example, United States Patent Application Publication US 2009/0065253 A1 by Suarez-Rivera et al. and entitled “Method and System for Increasing Production of a Reservoir” is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and provides a description of fracturing technology in order to increase permeability of reservoirs. Moreover, various techniques exist to further improve the fracture channels, such as by acid etching as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,943,060, issued Mar. 9, 1976 to Martin et al., which is likewise incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
In general, different types of processes require various treatments. In general, well production can be improved by fracturing formations. Fracturing is typically done by pumping a formation full of a fluid, containing a large fraction of water, and pressurizing that fluid in order to apply large surface forces to parts of the formation. These large surface forces cause stresses, and by virtue of the massive areas involved, can produce extremely high forces and stresses in the rock formations.
Accordingly, the rock formations tend to shatter, increasing porosity an providing space for the production oil to pass through the formation toward the bore hole for extraction. However, as the foregoing references describe, the chemistry is not simple, the energy and time required for incorporation of various materials into mixtures is time, money, energy, and other resource intensive.
It would be an advance in the art if such properties as viscosity, absorption, mixing, propping, and so forth could be improved by an improved composition and method for introduction.
Moreover, hydraulic fracturing has a rather sophisticated process for adding various constituents to the fracking fluids. Not only must proppants be added, but various other chemicals. In certain fracturing processes, it has been found important or even necessary to blend materials into the working fluid for fracturing. Such blending requires substantial equipment, occupying a very significant footprint on the overall well site.
Moreover, this equipment requires manpower, and maintenance of numerous receiving and storage areas. These are needed for various constituent products that will ultimately be added to the working fluid. All of these processes for mixing auxiliary materials into the fluid cause delays in time, since many of the materials require substantial mixing.
Particularly with small particles, surface tension tends to float such materials on the of liquids and require substantial mixing and substantial associated time. Many solids must be pre-mixed in oils, emulsions, and the like, increasing the effect of any spill. Meanwhile, addition of chemicals to a fracturing flow necessarily creates uneven distributions of additives. For example, upon addition, into the flow, a constituent is at a very high concentration near the well head. Meanwhile, none of that newly added constituent exists elsewhere. Thus, the ability to thoroughly distribute material, or to even get it distributed well throughout the fluid being introduced, has proven difficult.
Similarly, transportation of individual constituent chemicals and materials to the well site requires multiple vehicles specialized to different types of materials and phases. For example, some materials are fluids, some are solids, some use a water solvent, some use a petroleum-based solvent, and such materials must be hauled, delivered, and handled in distinct ways with their own suitable storage, handling, and transport equipment.
Various complaints have been encountered with the amount of hydrocarbons, such as various emulsions, chemical additives, including such materials as diesel fuel and the like that are often used. With such liquid chemicals on site, the risk of surface contamination due to chemical spills of such materials is increased. Even when contained in smaller containers, such materials run the risk of spills, carrying about by water, wind, and other weather, as well as the prospect of possible spilling during delivery, handling, or the feeding and mixing processes.
Meanwhile, the operational footprint required for storage, mixing systems, receiving, shipping, and the like increase the overall operational footprint of a well site. Moreover, money, labor, and time are substantial for the process of receiving, preparation, storage, handling, and ultimately mixing materials that will be added to a fracturing fluid.
Thus, it would be a substantial advance in the art to provide a system and method, and particularly a material, that would eliminate many of the handling, equipment, footprint, transportation, and other problems that exist in prior art materials and mixing systems to service fracture fluids.